German foreign minister’s trip is part of the road map for settling crisis laid out by the OSCE.

The leader of insurgency in the Luhansk region, Valery Bolotov, centre, greets people as they declare independence in eastern Ukraine on Monday.

By:Nataliya VasilyevaAssociated Press,Nataliya Vasilyeva Published on Tue May 13 2014

KYIV, UKRAINE—An insurgent ambush killed six soldiers Tuesday in eastern Ukraine as Germany moved to jump-start a possible plan toward peace that includes launching a dialogue on decentralizing the government in Kyiv.

Ukraine’s leadership appeared cool to the plan and U.S. officials view its prospects for success skeptically. But some analysts say Russian President Vladimir Putin is more likely to accept a deal that doesn’t come from Washington.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier is in Ukraine to try to broker a quick launch of talks between the central government and pro-Russia separatists. That would be a first step in implementing a “road map” drawn up by the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe aimed at settling the crisis.

The OSCE is a trans-Atlantic security and rights group that includes Russia and the U.S., whose sparring over each other’s role in Ukraine sometimes overshadows events on the ground.

Speaking in Brussels, acting Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk thanked the OSCE for its plan but said Ukraine has drawn up its own “road map” for ending the crisis and noted the people of his country should settle the issue themselves.

Ukrainian forces have mounted an offensive to try to put down the armed insurgents. On Tuesday, the Defence Ministry said six soldiers were killed by insurgents who ambushed a convoy. The separatist leader in Luhansk, one of the regions that declared independence, was shot and wounded, insurgents said.

With tensions high between Washington and Moscow, Steinmeier may be a more effective interlocutor. A senior official in the U.S. administration told The Associated Press that the U.S. had been co-ordinating with Germany and encouraging its leadership for a diplomatic path in Ukraine. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.

Putin “is far more likely to bow to pressure if it’s going to come from (German Chancellor) Angela Merkel than Barack Obama,” said Michael Geary of the Institute for European Global Studies at Switzerland’s University of Basel.

The OSCE plan, by encouraging discussion of decentralizing the government, suggests that the West sees Russia as having the upper hand. Moscow has pushed for the “federalization” of Ukraine — giving the regions more powers.

Keir Giles, a military analyst at the Chatham House think tank in London, said Moscow wants “Russia-backed separatists to have a voice in drafting a new constitution for Ukraine, which essentially means Russia dictating what the constitution should include.”

It is unclear which representatives could be included from the separatists’ side in the discussions. Ukraine has said it will not meet with “terrorists.”

The OSCE plan calls on all sides to refrain from violence and urges amnesty for those involved in the unrest as well as talks on decentralization and the status of the Russian language. It envisages a quick launch of high-level round tables across the country bringing together national lawmakers and representatives of the central government and the regions.

Russia called for a swift implementation of the OSCE plan, saying its demand to end violence means Kyiv should stop its military operation to recapture buildings in the east, lift its blockade of cities and towns, pull its forces from eastern regions and release all insurgents.